Let’s conscionable chopped to the chase. Is Starfield delayed?

Officially, no. And to beryllium just to Microsoft and Bethesda Game Studios, they already told america we wouldn’t beryllium proceeding thing retired of Todd Howard’s adjacent epic role-playing crippled during Wednesday’s Developer Direct showcase. There’s going to beryllium a stand-alone showcase for Starfield astatine immoderate point. It’s inactive 1 hellhole of an elephant not successful the room, particularly if 2 of the 4 games shown — Redfall and The Elder Scrolls Online’s Necrom enlargement — are large Bethesda projects launching successful May and June, respectively. It doesn’t look apt that Bethesda would privation to cannibalize involvement successful those projects (or Starfield) by packing that crippled into a May oregon June merchandise window.

Remember that, during the Xbox and Bethesda Showcase past June, Microsoft much oregon little wrote an IOU to fans, promising that Starfield would beryllium among a ample catalog of highly anticipated games launching successful the archetypal fractional of 2023 (and, arsenic first-party games, disposable the aforesaid time to Xbox Game Pass subscribers).

The updates we got Wednesday from Xbox and Bethesda connected Wednesday amusement that the archetypal fractional of Microsoft’s 2023 crippled calendar present looks similar this:

• April 18 — Minecraft Legends
• May 2 — Redfall
• June 20 — The Elder Scrolls Online: Necrom
• TBA 2023 — Forza Motorsport

Unless the Xbox folks person a astonishment shadiness drop, à la Tango Gameworks’ Hi-Fi Rush, planned for Starfield — which would look ill-advised — the sci-fi RPG’s merchandise is starting to consciousness slippery. (As is Forza’s; Microsoft and Turn 10 look unwilling to recommit to a first-half-of-2023 model for their racing game.)

The astir caller accusation astir Starfield’s motorboat came past May, successful which Bethesda told fans that it had been pushed to a first-half of 2023 motorboat window (along with Redfall.) Microsoft, during past year’s E3-adjacent summertime showcase, made a large woody retired of telling fans each the things they wanted to play would arrive by the archetypal half of 2023. Starfield was implied to beryllium 1 of those things.

In November, Howard, Bethesda Game Studios’ originative director, spoke with podcaster Lex Fridman astir Starfield and the hard determination to hold the crippled the archetypal time, from a November 2022 motorboat to the somewhat softer, little definite model it present has.

“I privation it was soon,” Howard said. “We privation it out, too. And I privation they didn’t instrumentality arsenic agelong arsenic they did. But, they do.”

We’ve asked Xbox and Bethesda representatives if Starfield should beryllium considered delayed. It’s doubtful they’ll privation to remark connected that, but if they do, we’ll beryllium definite to update it here.